The digital space is giving retailers more options to engage with shoppers than ever. Here are four ways SMBs can adjust their strategy to better engage with shoppers and compete with big brands.

"Now is the time to make all content commerce-able. Through embedding transactional capabilities directly into editorial and video content, advertisements, and other mediums, brands and retailers can capture consumer's attention at the very moment of inspiration and open new channels of revenue. Capitalizing on consumers' eagerness to seamlessly discover, save, and/or purchase items allows companies to make content more persuasive, which in turn drives sales and increases ROI," said Brian Marvin, COO and Co-Founder of Bringhub.

Invest in a holistic UX

"It's not just about desktop or mobile anymore. Retailers must establish a holistic digital strategy in 2017 and ensure that their user experience (UX) is cohesive across all digital channels, which must now include zero UI. Technology has made commerce interactions possible practically anywhere. A smartwatch, Amazon Echo or Google Home can become the point of sale in an instant, which has lead to a shift in consumers' expectations of their brand experience. Retailers who don't invest in a holistic UX that integrates every customer touch points risk losing ground to the competition," said Stephanie Trunzo, Chief Digital Officer & COO of PointSource.

Focus on your product information strategy

"While many retailers are overwhelmed with the bells and whistles of advanced e-commerce technology, retailers that focus on a robust product information strategy will have a strong foundation for cross-channel commerce success in 2017. Retailers that provide trusted, consistent and authentic product information will gain consumer trust and market share to compete with e-commerce giants now and in the future," said Nihat Arkan, CEO of 1WorldSync.

Embrace "phygital" experiences

"As the commerce experience continues to grow and evolve, people are becoming increasingly intolerant to perceived disconnects and discrepancies from brands across channels. Brands that operate different strategies across their physical and digital operations are at risk of losing customers who want a holistic approach. Many companies want to invest in next-gen commerce capabilities like virtual reality, voice assistants, and more, but the brands that will win consumers over in 2017 will be ones that bring their digital and physical strategies into one contiguous whole," said Roman Martynenko, COO of Astound Commerce.